How One Governor Stopped College Kids from Legally Carrying Guns on Campus

If its state legislature had its way, Georgia would have been the 10th state in America to allow licensed students to carry concealed guns on public college campuses.

But Governor Nathan Deal, a Republican, decided to veto his state's controversial "campus-carry" bill Tuesday, even though it was approved by his own party.

The law, which would have allowed 21-year-olds with gun permits to carry firearms to class, was opposed by about 62% of students, according to a poll conducted by the University of Georgia's newspaper. The Georgia Institute of Technology's internal polling found even more opposition.

Although the governor had signed a law nicknamed "guns everywhere" in 2013 that expanded the allowance of concealed weapons in churches, bars, and reportedly schools — Deal has now taken a more moderate approach to welcoming guns at schools.

"From the early days of our nation and state, colleges have been treated as sanctuaries of learning where firearms have not been allowed," he wrote. "To depart from such time-honored protections should require overwhelming justification. I do not find that such justification exists."

Other states, however, do think that guns on campus are justified. Earlier this week, Tennessee's governor signed a law that allows for professors to carry guns to class — although students still can't. The debate over whether more guns make schools more or less safe is raging across the US.